Recently I was in a game shop with a couple of friends, Valerie and Mike, and found myself feeling really old. While having a conversation with a rather large fellow about a miniature war game he liked to play I asked him if he had ever tried any Avalon Hill games. Much to my surprise he had no idea what I was talking about, and when he said and I quote: "was that after Mech warrior?" I felt like I was going to cry. How could anyone not know about such great games as Afrika Korps, Squad Leader, or Panzer Blitz? But there before me stood a mountain of passive ignorance, sporting a look that spoke of quiet amusement as I tried to explain what strategic war games used to be before he was glint in his mother's eye.
When I was a wee boy, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and seventy, I was introduced to a game based upon a series of children's books called, Uncle Wiggily. To be completely honest I cannot recall fully all the various rules of the game itself, but what I do remember is that it was rather simple. The idea was to get old Uncle Wiggily through the magic forest to his home or, some other safe spot, were he could relax and have tea? Anyway, I played this on the living room floor of our small house with my Ma, brother, and sister. The bright hues of the plastic game pieces fascinated me, especially the dark green one which I always had to have. The cartoon images on the board made for an open and pleasing setting for young minds to absorb.
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AuthorAl Butler and Mike McKenney are not professional review experts by any stretch, but they do know what they like in a game. Categories
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July 2015
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